Please join the NC State Graduate School in celebrating the fourth annual Graduate Education Week. Festivities will begin on Monday (March 18) and continue through Saturday (March 23).

We begin our week-long celebration on Monday afternoon with the Outstanding Teaching Assistant Awards ceremony at the McKimmon Center. The TA awards rewards excellence in graduate student teaching and recognized instructional efforts in the laboratory and classroom. On Tuesday, show support for your fellow grad students by attending the 8th Annual Graduate Student Research Symposium.

There are also a variety of informative seminars and workshops scheduled throughout the week. Service Raleigh on Saturday, March 23, brings the 2013 Graduate Education Week to a close. Service Raleigh is an annual city wide day of service where volunteers from the university, as well as surrounding communities, undertake a variety of projects which provide needed assistance to local organizations. Service Raleigh requires registration and will close with 2000 volunteers.

For a full listing of events, please see the Graduate Education Week web site.

Graduate Education Week highlights graduate education, as well as the great work of our graduate students. In addition, the week will serve as an opportunity to attract prospective students and legitimize the need for state funding.

The University North Carolina system offers more than 700 master's and 200 doctoral and professional degree programs. From agriculture to creative writing to nuclear engineering, graduate studies in North Carolina drive the production of knowledge and contribute substantially to our state's economic and social prosperity.

Graduate education benefits the state of North Carolina in a number of ways.

• Creates a highly skilled workforce. Graduate education meets North Carolina's need for highly skilled professionals in areas of critical need from nursing and education to biotechnology, engineering, business, and public service.
• Benefits the economy. Graduate research attracts new businesses, revitalizes existing ones, and encourages the creation of startup companies — generating new jobs and increasing revenues for North Carolina.
• Repays the state's investment through its graduates. North Carolina graduate degree recipients often secure professional employment within the state and make economic and cultural contributions to the state after graduation.
• Provides workers with opportunities to retool, advance their skills, and improve their employability. Workers with advanced degrees earn higher wages, contribute to the economy, and are less likely to be unemployed or need public assistance.
• Enhances quality of life. Graduate research improves the quality of life of North Carolina citizens through research that improves kindergarten through college education, improves the health of North Carolina citizens, addresses the state's most difficult social problems, and helps maintain the beauty of the environment.
• Nourishes North Carolinians creative spirit. Graduate education enhances connections and improves understanding through cultural and artistic performances, literature, poetry, and other forms of creative expression.

Please celebrate NC State's graduate students!

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